Barcelona announce Gerard Deulofeu will return to Camp Nou ahead of next season

It had previously been reported that Barcelona were keen on activating a buy-back clause in the Spaniard’s contract and on Friday, they confirmed that the 23-year-old would spend a second period at the club.

After failing to impress Ronald Koeman, Deulofeu was loaned out to AC Milan for the second half of the last campaign where he went on to score four goals in 17 Serie A appearances.

A statement read: “FC Barcelona have activated the buy-back clause for Gerard Deulofeu. In the following days, the terms will be agreed with both Everton and the player. Deulofeu’s contract will run until 30 June 2019.”

During his initial spell with Barca, Deulofeu made just six appearances in all competitions before spending loan periods at both Everton and Sevilla.

Everton were able to sign the winger on a permanent deal for just £4.2m in 2015, but that small fee was partly based on Barca being able to re-sign him for £10m.